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Paleontology

Casablanca
Photo credit: © Hamza Mehimdate, Programme Préhistoire de Casablanca.

Teeth, Jawbones, and Vertebrae Fuel Overblown Media Claims of a “Missing Link”

So we’re talking about fossils that are very humanlike, if not essentially completely human. Read More ›
SahelanthropustchadensisIMG2949
Photo credit: Rama, CC BY-SA 3.0 FR <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/fr/deed.en>, via Wikimedia Commons.

“Competition and Politics” Complicate Debate Over Sahelanthropus tchadensis

It seemed like lots of people wanted to forget about the femur, because years went by and nothing was published about the bone. Read More ›
USNMPAL57683OpabiniaregalisImage3
Photo: Opabinia regalis, by Han Zeng, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.

New Paper Has Bad News for Popular “Oxygen Theory” of the Cambrian Explosion

The technical paper acknowledges that this level of oxygenation, if sustained, would indeed “challenge the view” that oxygen was a trigger for animal evolution. Read More ›
Pterosaur
Photo: Ludodactylus sibbicki, by G. Bechly 2008.

No. 4 Story for 2025: Farewell to Günter Bechly

I told Richard Sternberg a story from own experience. I learned about more than paleontology from Bechly. Read More ›
PteridiniumsimplexNamibia
Photo: Pteridinium simplex, an Ediacaran creature from Namibia, by Ghedoghedo, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons.

Despite Exceptionally Well-Preserved Namibian Fossils, Ediacaran Mystery Remains

Simon Conway Morris described the Ediacaran ecology as a “sleepy” world of simple, passive creatures bearing no resemblance to what was to come. Read More ›
Homo-neanderthalensis-im-Gesprch-mit-sapiens-sapiens
Photo: Neanderthal Museum, by Endimione, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.

With Neanderthals and Denisovans, We Are All the Same Kind of Being

Evolutionary anthropologists need to stop putting people groups into “less evolved” categories. It’s a form of historical racism.  Read More ›
ancient-footprint-embedded-in-earth-showing-detail-of-toes-a-1349464012-stockpack-adobestock
Ancient footprint embedded in earth, showing detail of toes and sole
Image Credit: A B I G A I L - Adobe Stock

The Neanderthal Story Keeps Evolving (Even if Nothing Else Does)

The University of Seville announces that Neanderthal footprints found along Portugal’s Algarve coast have led to unexpected insights about Neanderthal culture. Read More ›
Aulacopleurakonincki6mm
Photo: Aulacopleura koninckii, by Zavadluk, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons.

Ancient Eyes, Modern Design: The Remarkable Vision of Trilobites

Does this discovery suggest that the principles of compound vision emerged nearly half a billion years ago as the authors concluded? Read More ›
cave-with-cave-drawings-cartoon-mountain-scene-background-pr-271755830-stockpack-adobestock
Cave with cave drawings. Cartoon mountain scene background Primitive cave paintings. ancient petroglyphs.
Image Credit: ✦ Bizarre Factory ✦ - Adobe Stock

In Study of Human Psychology, the Power of “Maybe”

This is not science and is not a good look for a psychology that purports to have some relationship with science. Read More ›
YunxianManCraniumII10161611733
Photo credit: Gary Todd from Xinzheng, China, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Skulls from China Said to Push Origin of Homo sapiens Back to 1 Million Years 

How many times have we been told that some new paleoanthropological find is “rewriting the story of human evolution”? Read More ›

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